New sirens added; testing is Thursday

posted November 5th, 2008

As part of improvements to the DukeALERT notification system, the university has added two sirens to its outdoor warning system that will be tested between noon and 2 p.m. Thursday.

Last month, Duke conducted a systemwide test of its DukeALERT emergency notification protocol, which included activating the outdoor warning sirens on campus. The university has decided to add the two sirens to enhance campuswide notification of broadcast messages.

During the Thursday test, a new siren on East Campus near Trinity Avenue will sound first, followed by the new siren near the West Campus Quad. After those two sites are tested, the entire outdoor warning system will be activated for less than a minute.

“Our process is about continuous improvement, and we’re enhancing what we have in place to ensure robust coverage in the event of an imminent, life-threatening emergency,” said Aaron Graves, associate vice president for campus safety and security.

During the testing, people outdoors on campus and in nearby neighborhoods may hear loud tones, as well as a recorded test message.

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